Iowa entered Saturday's game with Northwestern needing a strong rebounding performance after losing to Michigan State last week. After some early struggles, Iowa found its rhythm and dominated the Wildcats with a 40-14 victory.

Four Downs looks at the key storylines from Iowa's stunning victory.

Finally. The Brendan Sullivan era in Iowa has Finally began when the Northwestern transfer took over at QB in the second quarter, eventually leading Iowa to 37 unanswered points and a 40-14 win. Cade McNamara got the go-ahead score and completed 73 yards with 7:13 left, including a 42-yard completion to Seth Anderson (Iowa's longest pass play of the season).

Several of McNamara's throws looked shaky; Those that were caught required impressive individual effort on the part of the recipient, and those that were not caught often went badly wrong. He had several bad throws on Iowa's first scoring drive as the offense stalled and he needed a 24-yard field goal from Drew Stevens to get on the board. His decision-making also looked poor at times, particularly on the miserable throw that was intercepted by Theran Johnson and returned 85 yards in the second quarter.

Sullivan entered the game after that interception, but the move didn't pay immediate dividends. The offense gained 23 yards on Sullivan's first three drives and Iowa scored a three-pointer and a punt on all three drives. Sullivan ended up with 1:22 left until halftime.

Completions to Dayton Howard (8 yards) and Zach Ortwerth (6 yards) as well as a pair of scrambles to Sullivan totaling 12 yards got the offense going. Then, on 3rd-and-1 from the Northwestern 26, Kaleb Johnson put together a highlight-reel touchdown run that will be repeated for the rest of this season (and beyond):

Things really got going for Sullivan and the Iowa offense in the third quarter. Iowa gained 167 yards in the quarter and averaged 10.4 yards per play while outscoring Northwestern 28-0 (21-0 offensively). The running game was the deciding factor – 11 carries for 104 yards – but Sullivan was also effective as a passer, finishing the game 4 of 5 for 63 yards. He also used his legs effectively, scoring a 6-yard touchdown on a zone read on Iowa's opening drive of the third quarter and picking up a key fourth down on a 4th-and-1 run later in the quarter.

Sullivan's totals aren't overwhelming – 9 of 14 for 79 passing yards and 41 rushing yards, plus a score on eight carries – but they were enough to free up space for the rest of the offense. With McNamara in the game, Northwestern flooded the penalty box and suffocated Johnson, daring McNamara to throw the ball to beat them. Sullivan's mobility provides another weapon for the defense and creates more space for Johnson and Iowa's other running backs.

There isn't much new to say about Kaleb Johnson right now, but his remarkable 2024 season continues. After a very quiet start – Johnson had a net of two yards after his first five carries – he finally looked like it Caleb Johnson again on the last drive before halftime. On 3rd-and-1, Johnson got the ball and exploded through the line, dancing through and around several Northwestern defenders on his way to the end zone. It was a simply breathtaking run.

Johnson also kept his foot on the accelerator in the third quarter. He had six carries for 79 yards in the quarter, with his last two runs both allowing touchdowns of 25 yards. The first:

Johnson finished the game with 14 carries for 109 yards and three touchdowns. It's the sixth time in eight games that he's had at least two rushing touchdowns and the third time he's had three touchdowns (he also ran for three against Minnesota). He now has 16 touchdowns for the season, just four shy of Shonn Greene's program record of 20.

Offensively, it's been the Kaleb Johnson Show for Iowa all season, and the switch to Brendan Sullivan at quarterback should give Johnson even more opportunities to rush, penetrate and get around opposing defenses.

Northwestern scored 14 points on Saturday; None of those points came with the Iowa defense on the field. The Wildcats scored on an 85-yard pick-six in the second quarter and a 72-yard punt return score in the fourth quarter when the game was already out of reach.

The Wildcats had 14 drives in the game; Eight of those drives ended in punts, including seven three-point possessions. The Iowa defense also forced three turnovers (two interceptions and one fumble recovery), recorded a safety and managed to force a missed 50-yard field goal attempt on one of Northwestern's best offensive attacks of the game.

Northwestern gained 43 yards on that game-opening drive, including several successful chunk plays that went over 10 yards. While visions of last week's defensive collapse against Michigan State arose, Iowa's defense calmed down – the Wildcats had just 62 yards on their next 10 drives. Northwestern finished the game with 163 yards rushing and gained just 3.2 yards per play. There was no shutout recorded on the scoreboard, but overall this was another dominant performance from the Iowa defense.

Jay Higgins led Iowa with eight tackles and recorded an interception (his third of the season) in Iowa's avalanche of a third quarter. Nick Jackson had six tackles and recorded the pass deflection that led to Higgins' interception. Iowa didn't record many official pass rush stats – just two total sacks and two quarterback hurries – but the defense did a good job of making sure whatever quarterback was playing (the Wildcats used both Jack Lausch and Ryan Hilinski). a), was uncomfortable in the bag.

There are far tougher tests ahead than Northwestern's offense, but Saturday's performance was a much-needed course correction for Iowa's defense after the struggles it endured a week ago.

Before the Iowa offense found its rhythm just before halftime, the defense and special teams did their part to keep Iowa in control of the game. The offense punted on four of the game's first six drives, and each time true freshman Rhys Dakin nailed a perfect punt that flipped field position. Northwestern's starting position after these four punts:

Northwest 6
Northwest 6
Northwest 6
Northwest 5

Credit also goes to the gunners and coverage units that helped Dakin turn away those punts inside the 10-yard line or force fair catches from the Northwestern returner, but Dakin deserves a lot of flowers for those strong kicks that Northwestern made against the ( reliably deafening) enemy. North end zone until the Iowa offense finally got going.

Things weren't all rosy for Dakin, however – in the fourth quarter he launched a 45-yard punt (his first of the game since the second quarter), which was promptly returned 72 yards for a touchdown by Northwestern returner Drew Wagner, a real one Newbie. Unlike the booming punts in the first half that had a lot of playing time, this punt was low and more of a line drive, making it much more retaliable. Overall it was still a good day for Dakin, but it reminded me that he is still a complete newbie and still needs to work on his consistency.

That Northwestern punt return score was actually the one second of the game, a quarter after Iowa's Kaden Wetjen had an impressive 85-yard punt return (see above) that opened the game and gave Iowa a 26-7 lead. Wetjen has had several strong returns this season and has often appeared on the verge of breaking one down for a touchdown (in fact, he had returned one earlier this season), so it was gratifying to see him finally fulfill that promise on Saturday. He has proven to be a more than capable replacement for Cooper DeJean in the kick return department this season.